CANADA (Sasha Stoltz Publicity): Celebrating their 10th Anniversary ReelWorld Film Festival (RWFF) kicks off with the North American premiere of Canadian film OFF WORLD the much anticipated feature from writer, director and co-producer Mateo Guez. ReelWorld’s Gala Screening will be hosted once again at Scotiabank Theatre because of their long successful partnership with Cineplex Entertainment. The Opening Night is made possible through the generous support of TD Bank Financial, another long standing partner of ReelWorld.

Off World follows Lucky, a young man in his twenties, who travels to the Philippines in search of his birth parents. His journey leads him through the slums of Manila to Smokey Mountain, an infamous landfill where the air is so hot and toxic that it sometimes ignites the surrounding waste. Adopted as an infant and a foreigner in his birthplace, Lucky has arrived not at home, but at the edge of the earth. His quest for his origins forces him to come to terms with his own identity and provokes him to embrace life fully before it is too late. This beautifully shot drama tells the story of a person and a place at the same time. It explores in profound ways the idea that finding one’s origin requires travelling to the most alien places.

Tickets are $20 for the Gala Screening only and $25 for Gala Screening and After Party.

ReelWorld Film Festival (RWFF) celebrates cultural diversity in the Film industry. 2010 is a milestone year for ReelWorld, for the past decade the festival has delivered groundbreaking films from diverse communities to a broad spectrum of Toronto audiences. This year’s five-day line-up continues to support films from the Aboriginal, Asian, Black, Latino, Middle Eastern, South Asian and other multi-racial communities, and promises to surpass the standards set in previous years.

Features, Documentaries, Shorts, Music Videos, Industry Panels and so much more. Films from Nigeria, Philippines, India, Korean, Ethiopia, South African, Iran, Mexico, with over 60% Canadian content!

Garrett Godwin is an entertainment journalist, who writes for NewsBlaze about television and people in the entertainment industry, from his home state of Michigan. Contact Garrett by writing to NewsBlaze.